The Kickapoo Valley Reforestation Fund was established through a generous bequest to the University of Wisconsin Foundation by Ralph Nuzum, a long-time businessman and resident of the Kickapoo Valley.

Proposals must identify a significant assessment, action or analysis which, upon completion, could reasonably be expected to enhance the overall quality of life in the Kickapoo Valley. Proposals also should identify some practical measure or indicator of success that could be understood and appreciated by non-scientists.

The following principles will also guide the Committee in selecting projects for support:

• Projects should propose actions or devise solutions which address pragmatic problems deriving from past or current use of forest lands and which improve our understanding, appreciation and management of forest resources in the Kickapoo Valley.
• Projects should focus on forest resources in the broad sense, including biophysical features, economic activities, and human interactions with the distinctive ecology of the Kickapoo Valley.
• Projects should have a strong scientific basis and build upon results of past research and action programs conducted in the Valley and in similar rural communities and landscapes of the upper Midwest.
• Projects must be collaborative in nature and include a member of the UW-Madison faculty or staff (with PI Status), as well as a Kickapoo Valley-related collaborator.
• Salary support for faculty with 12-month appointments and Kickapoo cooperating agency permanent professional staff salaries cannot be included in project budget. For faculty with 9-month appointments, summer salary cannot be budgeted for more than one summer month/year.  Projects budgets that include a CALS RA/PA and faculty summer salary are not allowable.
• The Fund does not provide general operating funds for Valley-based organizations. Funds may not be used to support litigation or lobbying, land purchases or construction or capital improvements.
• Use of the Nuzum fund to leverage other funding sources is strongly encouraged.

Submit proposals electronically to: nuzum@cals.wisc.edu by January 12, 2024. Applications should not be submitted via RAMP.

More information, proposal forms and format can be found here.

Please direct all inquiries to Casey Hillmer (608) 262-2397 or casey.hillmer@wisc.edu.